Essence: Accurately Reflect the ethnic group or does it ...

A detailed Summary of Essence: Accurately Reflect the ethnic group or does it ...

I purchased the November issue of Essence Magazine, which is primarily an African American publication. Judging by the type of products being advertised in this magazine its target economic demographic is middle to upper class. Does Essence magazine accurately reflect the African American ethnic group or does it merely cast black models into "white roles"?

This magazine is filled with articles that relate to women, while some of the pieces are not limited by a specific race, most of the content is meant to reach the middle class African American woman. One of the major articles is a piece on domestic violence and the rising occurrence of violence among teenage couples. This is a concerning issue among many races, but the article was laced with black stasticis and the real-life stories involved black girls as the victims of domestic violence at the hands of black teenage boys. There is no doubt that this article could have been written with facts and stories featuring any race. This does not discount its validity as an ethnic article, or its importance to its readers. Domestic violence is a global issue we cannot limit the contents of this magazine only to things that happen to or affect the black population.

The advertising in this magazine can be broken into two categories; ethnic specific products and general merchandise. The ethnic specific advertisements include specialized hair care and make-up to compliment the darker complexion. General merchandise ranges from personal care to automobiles. In most of these ads the models are black and are similar to ads in other magazines for the same products. These ads do not appear as made over white ads with black models dropped in. These ads all seem natural and well fit for the economic class of Essence's intended audience.

I find that the real dilemma in answering this question is whether or not magazines accurately reflect any group to which it markets itself. For instance I compared a fashion finds page from Essence and one from another magazine. Both listed the newest trends, generally all in one color scheme along with a price tag and maker for each item. Both pages were created similarly and both seem to be a little on the outrageous side. What women in Lafayette Indiana could get by with wearing knee high boots with sequins and beading? But these boots are supposed to be the newest and hottest trend in fashion and are apart of both magazines. Recently on a TV show this same type of boot was featured as the newest trend maybe it is the intention of the media to just embrace the largest group possible by using broad content knowing that not all content will appeal t

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Approximate Word count = 968
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: Miscellaneous